Li echoed pledges from President Xi Jinping’s two-hour speech Sunday as the premier spoke with delegates during a group discussion at the Communist Party’s congress, according to a report by the official Xinhua News Agency.

The market should play a “decisive” role in allocating resources, Li said, adding the country is committed to opening up the economy, promoting fair competition in the market and improving people’s livelihoods – all promises outlined by Xi in Sunday’s opening remarks.

Li also urged to keep the economy running within a “reasonable” range, and highlighted the importance of its quality.

His remarks, published late Monday by Xinhua, came as the nation’s statistics authority unexpectedly delayed the publication of third-quarter gross domestic product data. The data, which was to include other major monthly economic indicators, was originally scheduled for release Tuesday.

Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expect GDP to show a rebound in the third quarter to 3.2% after near-zero growth in the April-to-June period. That would still be a low growth rate for China, reflecting the impact that tight coronavirus controls and a lengthy property slump have had on the economy.